TNF 100 (24 Oct 2009)

Julie and I teamed up for the TNF 100 today - Women's 100k duo. Pleasantly surprised to come in 2nd, when we were just aiming to complete. We even sliced almost 1hr off our target time! I think it was a classic case of heavens, people, time and stars aligned. :)

Photos- http://picasaweb.google.com/simsps/TNF10024Oct2009#

Position : 2 Team: CHILLI PADI Total Timing: 13:08:04.22
Tag No Name Team Timing Pos
2030-1 Julie Ong CHILLI PADI 06:29:02.31 004
2030-2 Sim Phei Sunn CHILLI PADI 06:39:01.91 005

The flag off was 7am. We started in the middle and ran at a steady pace. For the first 30km, we were consistently ~1:15+h per 10k. And then I started to slow down, and tried to avert abductor cramps.

Start - BT water & time checkpoint: 1:18h (after drinks)
To 20k mark: 1:11h (2:30h)
To 30k mark: 1:17h (3:47h)
To 40k mark: 1:24h (5:12h)
To End: 1:25h (6:39h)

The run was along familiar training routes, except for the Mandai/ Lor Asmara section. That was the army training grounds, and oh gosh, was it really tough. The area was typically closed to public, so we had no inkling of what the route was like. The slopes were long, steep and never-ending rolling. One passed and another loomed. The worst was a section called Hill 265. It was literally a 60-70deg red mud slope. Even as we trudged up, we had to pull on roots and anything in order not to slide backwards. I could imagine soliders in full battle packs chiong-ing up the hill. Whew! At that point, I had utmost respect for the 100k runners, who had to pass through that area twice. I could not wait to get out of the place!

I generally felt good, in high spirits. My legs were surprisingly fresh, possibly the result of a long break and few runs. But cramps set in along Rifle Range Road, around 5h+. :( I spent a good 10min walking, finding my Nuun tablets to suck on, and fishing for my muscle rub to smear all over my knee. The last 20k was a lot slower than my 30k, with a lot of walking.

Since we did not see any female runners ahead of us, we should have a good chance of a podium placing. Indeed, we came in 2nd with a combined time of 13:08h. The 1st team's timing was 15min ahead - 12:53h. Hmmm.... that meant we were about 7-8min each behind them. Wow, that was close!

I just realised that all my winnings came from ultra runs. Of the 4 ultras that I had ran, I managed to get a prize or placing for 3 of them, and of which 2 were trail events. Hmmm...! Maybe I should switch 'vocation' and do more trails or ultras. Haha.